, 1887-04-19
CHINESE DOCTORS IN AMERICA.
"The Golden Mirror of M~edicine"-Di-
nEnosis and Treatment.

THE Golden Mirror of DIedicine"-Di-
agnosis and Treatment.
Many of the Chinese stores in our Amer
lean cities keep q supply of Chinese drugs
and all of them sell Chinese proprietary
medicines, UGH as piIs to aid digestion,
the ''red pills." Sha hi un for cholera,
catarrh snuff and other specifics COM
pounded in the Canton drug shops. These
are always neatly packed and labeled, and
accompanied with printed directions for
their use.
The doctors, called / shang, of whom
there are now -four in Philadelphia, are
usually from the Sam zap, or '"Three
Districts" Immediately adjacent to Can
ton city. They are much better educated
than tho mass of the people. None of any
repute at homo come to America, but it is
said there arc several very skilled ones in
San Francisco and some of the western
cities who have a large practice among
Americans. Those in New York and
Philadelphia rank very low in their pro-
fession i'll the estimation of their country
men. They are all dignified with the title
of sin shang, equivalent to master or
teacher, the only title of respect current
among the Chinese in the American cities,
and shared with the men who manage tho
drawings of the lotteries.
A slight knowledge of medicine is gen.
eral among the people. They have been
accustomed to take medicines from their
childhood, when their mothers, by a kind
of sortilege. selected some simple prescrip-
ton to relieve their infantile complaints.
The study of the physicians art is not con
lined to their doctors. Many others buy
Inc read works on the subject that are
sold in their stores, in which very exact
directions are given for the treatment of
all the diseases known to them.
The book generally referred to is the
'Tsang 9 kan kam," or 'The Golden
Mirror of Medicine, " a collection of medical
works compiled by order of the Emperor
Kienlung In 1740. The Canton reprint
sold here is contained in forty small octave
volumes, the first thirty of which are de
voted to nui 70, or internal medicine"
while the remaining ten comprise the kan
kan ngoi TO, or Golden Mirror of EXter-
nal Practice" by 'Ng Him. The price
of the complete set here is about $2.25.
While the Chinese in our eastern cities
are superstitious, and cherish many of
their native beliefs, they do not worship
any particular god of medicine, and the
practice of medicine among them is COM
p~aratively free from superstitious obser-
vances. Sick people sometimes burn
copies of the charms found in the popular
works on d%ivination and magic, and drink
tea made from the ashes, but this is done
with very little serious belief in the eff
cacy of such treatment.
In cases of prolonged illness, a friend Of
the sick person is sometimes sent TO the
local shrine of Kwan tai, the divinity
generally worshiped, to burn incense and
ask the will of heaven as to his recovery
by throwing the diyining sticks.
Diseases which do not succumb to
the treatment after being correctly
diagnosed and the right medicine admin
istered are looked upon as due to the in
fluence of a spirit or devil. Hysteria is
generally regarded as an evidence of
demoniac possession.
The doctors show much solicitude about
administering any medicine that may
cause n fatal result, owing, no doubt, to
the penalties inflicted in China upon such
mis~adventures, so that their treatment In
general, if not beneficial, does no particu-
lar harm to their patients.-Medical and
Surgical Reporter.